A total of 5,653 child sex crimes committed against children as young as three had an online element across England and Wales in the last year.

This is an increase of nearly half from 2015/16, when 39 forces across England and Wales responding to a Freedom of Information (FOI) request from the NSPCC recorded 3,903 cyber-related sexual offences.

The latest data from Northumbria Police shows a staggering rise of 229.5%, with reported cyber sex offences against children rising from 98 to 323 in 2016/17.

Detective Chief Superintendent Lisa Orchard for the force said the safety of children is ‘paramount’ and urged anyone with concerns to report them.

She added: “We have a specialist safeguarding department and a cyber-crime unit which are dedicated to protecting those who may be vulnerable to these sorts of crimes and preventing offenders being able to target them online.

A child's hand pressing a key of a laptop keyboard (Image: PA)

“The internet has opened up new opportunities for abusers online and we are working closely with our partners to improve online safety education and raise awareness of how to stay safe online.

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On average, 15 internet-related sex crimes against children have been recorded each day by police.

For offences where age was recorded, 13 was the most common age of the victim (257) but there were nearly 100 offences committed against children aged ten and under. The youngest victim was just three-years-old.

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The NSPCC are also working towards safer social media accounts for children with default privacy settings for their protection.

Peter Wanless, CEO of the NSPCC, said: “These figures confirm our fears that offenders are exploiting the internet to target children for their own dark deeds.

“Children also tell our Childline service that they are being targeted online by some adults who pose as children and try to meet them, or persuade them to perform sexual acts on webcams, before blackmailing them.

“This terrifies them and can leave some feeling worthless, depressed, and suicidal.

“We cannot idly sit by knowing that more and more innocent young people are being harmed online. Today’s worrying data leaves the next government with no choice but to urgently address this issue.

“We are calling on them to force internet companies and social media sites to adhere to rules that keep their young users safe.”